PM bars media from Wing of Zion jet for 2nd straight US trip

Journalists union demands Netanyahu allow press on his upcoming flight to Washington

Union emphasizes public funds paid for reporters’ designated area on official plane, urges PM’s office to reverse ban

The Union of Journalists in Israel on Tuesday urged the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) to reverse its decision to bar journalists from joining Benjamin Netanyahu’s flight to meet US President Donald Trump in Florida later this month.

Journalists who regularly cover the premier, including at The Times of Israel, were notified by a PMO spokesperson last week that they would not be permitted to join the premier’s flights on the Wing of Zion aircraft, and would need to arrange travel independently for the December 28-January 1 trip. The spokesperson did not provide any explanation or reference an established policy on the matter.

The union sent a letter Tuesday through its legal counsel, Amir Basha, to the PMO’s legal adviser, Shlomit Barnea Farago, demanding a reversal of the decision.

The letter emphasized that Wing of Zion contains a designated area for journalists that was allocated with public resources. “Accordingly, excluding journalists from the flight constitutes an unreasonable and arbitrary decision that seriously undermines press freedom and the public’s ability to receive independent coverage of the prime minister’s activities,” reads a press release from the union with the letter attached.

The letter to the PMO also noted that there is no official or regulated policy governing journalists’ participation in official flights — a situation it said “allows for ad hoc decision-making that harms core democratic principles and freedom of the press.”

This marks the second straight US visit in which Netanyahu is excluding journalists from joining him on the official state plane Wing of Zion. During the premier’s trip to the US in September, his office said he would not bring journalists on the flight “due to technical arrangements related to seating and security.”

The PMO did not immediately comment on the latest controversy.

The prime minister has a hostile relationship with much of Israel’s mainstream media, accusing it of bias against him, and mostly avoiding sit-down interviews in Hebrew-language outlets except for the firmly pro-Netanyahu Channel 14.

Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi is advancing a proposal that would do away with laws limiting broadcast licenses, while increasing competition and consumer choice. At the same time, it would create a government-controlled panel with the power to shape content via various pressure tactics, such as fines.

Critics say the reform will stifle free speech and replace it with content driven by corporate or political interests.

The proposed legislation has received widespread criticism from opposition figures, good-governance organizations, and the attorney general.